Preferable to Starmer he may be, but there is scant sign of a sharp political break in Burnham’s policies so far — while left challenges aren’t making much of a running either, finds ANDREW MURRAY. How can socialism be put back on the map?
NEWS that the number of children in care in England could reach almost 100,000 by 2025, comes in timely fashion after November’s latest Children in Need appeal.
The harsh reality on the front line of Tory cuts and privatisation will cut through the glitzy, celebrity-saturated telethon, which has seen the amount raised on the night drop every year since 2016.
New county council research reveals that the projected number of children in care would represent a 36 per cent rise since the Tories came to power.
Years of underfunding are eroding Scotland’s local services and deepening inequality in communities, says VINCE MILLS
If the government really wanted to address public finances, improve living standards and begin economic recovery, it would increase its borrowing for investment, argues MICHAEL BURKE



